Android Turns Three

Google’s operating system has just turned three and it has given us plenty of good things. Three years have been torturous at the beginning but in the end it becomes much sweeter. When the Nexus One was once released and Android didn’t support multi-touch, many people accused it as a Google-hacked iPhone anyone could make.

It was not until late 2009 when the Motorola Droid, supported by an aggressive marketing campaign, it catapulted the operating system to fame. Today, the Android runs phones, tablets, televisions and even cars.

The Android mobile operating system was officially announced along with the establishment of Open Handset Alliance (OHA) about three years ago: November 5, 2007. Almost a year later we saw the first phone that was powered by Android and today it has became the fastest growing operating system in the phone industry. It already ranks second, behind Symbian, and it is only a matter of time that the crown of the ultimate mobile operating system, will be given to an open source OS.

It was the brainchild of Eric Schmidt, who said at its birth that he introduced a powerful platform that would be supported by thousands of phone models. Today, the figure hardly reaches two hundred, but it is accepted more by the phone industry than some had predicted. HTC, LG and Samsung have already proven the versatility of Android and in some cases even outselling the almighty iPhone.

While its mobile platform was in its infancy, Google focused its efforts on Chrome OS, an operating system that aims to revolutionize the PC world. So far it is confirmed that Chrome OS will power a smartbook, essentially a hybrid between netbook and smartphone, which is scheduled for later this month.

Today we know a thing or two about Android and about the possibility it offers. The next version of Android will be called Gingerbread or Android 2.3. The Android implementation for tablets will be known as Honeycomb and it is expected to bring plenty of supports for tablets. As for the apps, there are currently more than a hundred thousand of them at the Android Market and it is growing daily.

We experience Android’s surge lately and it is in a good position to be the most popular OS smartphone in the US in a few years. Shipments of Android devices keep on moving at breakneck speeds and we see no slowdown in sight. Some even believe that the much expected Verizon’s iPhone in early 2011 will not make a dent in the overall Android sales.